Her first task of the day involved one of her last trial fittings for the gown she would wear to her birthday ball, only nine days away.
It was supposed to be the last fitting.
Supposed to be.
Zelda was dying atop her pedestal as the seamstress pulled the strings of her dress with a fury never before seen.
"I don't understand." The seamstress grumbled with one more yank. "How is it I've gotten your bust size wrong after seven years?"
Zelda prayed the mad woman would give up on her torture tactics.
"Madam, please," Zelda gasped out. She could feel her upper body be pulled way too tightly, aching her skin and pulling where it shouldn't have.
"Fine." She released the strings with a huff, grabbing her notebook and a measuring tape. "I'll just have to rework your dress."
Zelda pulled her arms out of the short sleeves of the off-shoulder dress and let the seamstress pull the top of the dress below her chest. She lifted her arms as best she could and allowed the seamstress to measure her, passing the tape around the swell of her breasts and all the way back. The tape remained there, occasionally being pulled a bit snugger and the seamstress' hand passing to ensure it hadn't snagged anywhere.
"Well then," she heard the woman huff silently.
"Is something the matter, madam?" Zelda watched the tape be pulled back.
"It seems your presentation has given more development to your bosom." She heard rustling in the bag behind her. "My daughter wasn't nearly as lucky as you, she only got a little bit more. You've gone up several sizes. I'll need to alter a few of your gowns if they give you any problems."
She hesitated at the words. "Yes, ma'am. May I ask a question?"
"Go on, dear."
"Is this type of thing normal? I mean- I'm a bit embarrassed to say I'm not very educated on these matters."
The older woman sighed and packed up her things into her travel bag. "Dear, it's all normal. Some it affects more than others; some might gain some, lose some, or remain perfectly the same."
"So… Just another puberty then?"
"Yes." Just as the seamstress was about to close her bag, she circled the princess with an analytical eye, glancing over her overall figure in the dress. "Hmm… I ought to measure you elsewhere while I'm at it."
Zelda nodded silently as the woman pulled her measuring tape out of her bag, circling it around her waist, hip and another time around her breasts. She was far gentler this time, rather than her initial tugging.
"Madam? Do you often get asked about these things?"
"Far more than you realise, dear. You noblewomen don't get told anything for the strangest reasons." She grumbled with an almost silent chuckle.
Zelda understood that sentiment. She'd gone off on a rant with her cousin, Impa, Purah, some of her ladies' maids, Lady Urbosa, and Mipha, to make the list short.
Why, for a society that put so much focus on heirs, did they keep the women of all people in the dark? From what she'd heard from Link, the notion of intercourse was smacked into every man's face the moment they were old enough to know any of the uncomfortable details, no matter the designation.
But women? Nooo. Zelda always cursed this topic. She'd heard from the married women themselves that she'd be told about everything when she would be getting married. The double standards were astounding, and quite laughable whenever someone tried to tell her they didn't exist.
Why did she have to learn about this shit from her knight? Why from the gossiping maids in the kitchens from when she eavesdropped from her hiding spot? Why'd she have to learn
She took a brief glance at the seamstress, who seemed to be growing more irate with every question she asked. "Do you mind if I ask you about this? I'm terribly sorry-"
"I'd rather you know a thing or two, even if it is to my discomfort." She cut her off with a stern glare. "Now please, I can't measure you properly if you are babbling on constantly, Your Highness."
Zelda dismissed the comment, knowing it wasn't meant to be taken personally. She was indeed making this more difficult than it needed to be. She was just glad the woman wasn't lying to her about everything.
"I'd like to re-measure you next Thursday for any more changes."
Zelda turned her head to the seamstress, a raised eyebrow in question. Was her measurements changing? "Madam?"
"Since your breast measurements have changed rather drastically, I'd like to take note of any other changes that might occur within the next few weeks for any future projects. I am expecting your hip and waist to change as well. As of right now, it's a negligible difference, I know you had breakfast before your fitting but I'd like to be on the safer side for the following days."
"Understood."
Why did she have to eat breakfast before her fitting? What was she thinking?! It had been drilled into her head since her early teen years that she shouldn't have more than a snack right before a fitting to ensure the best and most accurate measurements.
She had been hasty in returning from her morning prayers, starved by the end of the hour-long prayer in the water, and she hadn't wasted a single moment in requesting a plate of sausages and toast to eat in her chambers. It was only after Impa had commented about the fitting that Zelda realised her mistake in her schedule and finished her plate with a gloomier demeanour.
"My business is done here, Your Highness." The sound of a bag clipping closed echoed in her room as the ladies' maids stepped to the small makeshift pedestal Zelda stood on and carefully helped her out of her gown.
It took Zelda no time at all to get dressed in something more comfortable for daily wear and to grab one of her guards and Impa to leave the castle. She wasn't in the mood to deal with her father and his nonsense today.
Clear skies, the occasional cloud passing over the sun, and a reflective ground that splashed with every footstep. That's all Link could see for miles wherever he looked. No matter where he walked, the sun was in front of him, even if he turned around and went the opposite direction. It was like he was walking without a clear destination in mind, enjoying the scenery.
It was tranquil, Link could close his eyes and relax here as long as he wanted
CRACK!
It was instantaneous; the sky covered over with the darkest clouds he'd ever seen and rain began in a heavy downpour.
CRACK!
A flash of purple and electric blue blinded him left and right; lightning was striking uncontrollably. He'd never seen a storm this bad before. Wind pushed him forwards, then back, then to the sides and even to the ground as if gravity was so much stronger.
Wasn't it just daylight?! Link looked around for the source of the storm, but found none. He was alone, safe for the thick, black miasma creeping out of the water around him like a thick spring fog.
"Spirit of the Hero…"
A deep malicious voice rang from every direction. Nothing about this weather felt natural, it reeked of everything Link found dangerous.
"... eternally bound…"
CRACK!
Link's eyes snapped open as he sat up in bed, body covered in cold sweat.
What was that? He looked around his bedroom, trying to take deep breaths to calm his heart rate. Who was that?
A flash lit up his room through his window; it was storming outside with heavy winds and rain. It was still night, but the moon and stars were hidden away by storm clouds, leaving the outdoors as pitch black as possible.
Link closed his eyes and wiped the sweat from his brow. It was only a dream , he had never dreamed like that before. Never had he been referred to as Spirit of the Hero in a dream.
He glanced at the Master Sword leaned up against the wall in the corner. It glowed its usual faint blue, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Eternally bound? Eternally bound to what?! Link ruffled through his hair roughly with both hands, trying to wrack his brain for anything else from the dream. He hadn't seen anyone, but that voice, why did it resonate so strongly? Why did he have a feeling he knew that voice?
Was it just a dream? Or was it coming through one of his predecessors? Link had a distinct feeling it was the latter, considering just how many there were and how he'd been referred to.
Spirit of the Hero… The first? It had to be. The spirit belonged to the first, no? And what was that business about 'eternally bound'? Bound to the sword? Bound to fight? Bound to reincarnate? Bound to what ?! He didn't know how to call upon the spirit again; the last time he'd had access to the statuette, but right now he had nothing to work with.
The more he tried to figure it out or make any sense of it, the more it hurt his head. "I need water," he threw his sheets off and threw on a shirt and a pair of pants and left his bedroom.
Breakfast was thankfully a calm ordeal. The storm had passed and the sun greeted them over the horizon as the last storm clouds disappeared down to Faron.
Link hadn't been able to sleep after that dream, it still continued to play in his head on loop, and he just couldn't shake the thought that it was important. He just prayed to every goddess in the sky that it was something that had already passed and not something coming for him.
Now that would be the true nightmare.
"Link, you have two letters from the palace." His father separated two crisp white envelopes from the pile of mail his mother had tossed on the table.
" Two? Who's writing to you?" Aryll nearly jumped over the table to snatch the mail to see the sender, but Link was quicker.
"Aryll! Your stitches!" His mother pulled his sister's shirt collar and yanked her back on the chair with an 'oomph'.
Link glared at Aryll before turning his attention to the envelopes. He identified one being from Zelda, the letter underneath, and the one on top came from, to his surprise, Arn.
Unsealing the first one, it found it to be very short, barely two sentences actually.
If I find you in another wardrobe, I'm going to tell Barnabus you're sneaking cake from the bakery and not giving him a piece.
-Capt. Arn
"Traitor."
"What's it say?" Aryll tried to reach for the letter.
"Read your own stuff," Link took a bite out of his toast and stashed away Zelda's note into his pants for later. He didn't dare open a letter from her around his family.
"No fair!"
Link deadpanned at his sister as he picked up his cup of coffee off the table. "How is it you have a baby, yet you're still whining about wanting to snoop through my mail?"
"I ask myself the same thing," He heard his father silently mutter from behind his morning paper.
"Aryll, leave your brother and his love letters alone."
"They're not love letters."
"Now I really wanna see!" She attempted to try the same trick, but his mother was faster, grabbing her collar once more and grounding her back into her chair.
"Go wake up your lazy bones of a husband, dear. He's been asleep long enough," his mother suggested as she took a seat next to Aryll.
"Fine."
As Aryll left the table, he heard his mother grumble out a few profanities, much of which he didn't hear the entirety but he knew the overall gist. "What are your plans for the day, dear?" His mother looked at his expectantly.
"I need to go see Mr. Jas, I have to go talk with Miss Purah atop the hill, and clean Epona's stall," Link listed off. He tried to think of other things but he drew a blank.\
"Jas? Why are you going there?" His father peeked over the paper and stared at him with the cold grey eyes.
"I need to go get a custom gift made for someone." For Zelda specifically.
"Ehh?! You're getting a ring-"
"That's not it! I'm getting a gift for someone."
"Well, I'm sorry for getting excited, you're just… well you're twenty-three, you should be thinking about getti-"
"It's the furthest thing from my mind right now, Mom." Link would not be telling his mother that he had, on the occasion, thought about it. He had thought about it too much, if he was being honest with himself.
"Dear-"
"The Calamity, training, guard duty, protecting the Princess, I don't have time to just court some lady on the side, Mom."
His mother sighed loudly before taking the most dramatic sip of her morning tea.
"Madeleine, leave him be. He'll get to it when he gets to it."
Link didn't miss the way his father gave him a stern glance from over the paper. That look told him they were going to be talking later, alone.
Escaping home was among the easiest tasks alive. All Link had to do was run out of the door saying "See you later!" And he could return whenever he wanted as long as it was before sunset.
He ran his errand at the local jeweller, making sure not to spend too much time there. He didn't need any of the neighbors telling his parents he spent an extended amount of time here. Immediately after putting in his request for the gift, he dashed out the door and up the steep hill where it took him nearly an hour an a half of a walk to get to the top.
"Purah, what do you think about reincarnation?"
Her pencil stilled in the air for a moment before she laid it on her desk and turned to Link, brow raised. "What do I think of reincarnation? Like, my thoughts on it or my scientific opinion on it?"
"Either one works."
She motioned for the chair across from her, and they both took a seat. "As part of the Sheikah, we believe the Goddess reincarnates in her female descendants, strictly following the maternal line. We believe it is our duty to protect that line to the best of our ability, our very lives on the line to ensure Her Grace lives."
He nodded slowly. "What about your opinion?"
"Personally? It's so confusing, it's better not to put much thought into it."
"So, you do or don't believe it exists?"
"Well, let's just say if it wasn't for the sword on your back, I would frankly believe it to be made up. A fantasy idea."
Link was surprised to say the least. He wasn't expecting that answer. He looked at the sword leaned on the table. "The Sword, huh…"
"Let me show you something." She grabbed his left and hand turned the palm face down on the table. "Legend states the Spirit of the Hero follows the Master Sword for eternity, and one such way we verify this is by having people of all skills and age attempt to pull the sword."
Link knew that much. He remembered the day he pulled the sword from the pedestal in the Lost Woods. He had heard people he knew attempt to pull the sword, only to be burned by divine purple flames coming from the hilt. Everyone described the ordeal as the same. The moment their hand touched the pummel, flames would appear.
He'd woken in the middle of the night to mysterious whispering in his head, urging him to step into the forest where lost souls were said to turn to Stals and he emerged no less than six hours later, sword in hand.
"Everyone's familiar with that legend," he said.
Purah hummed. "Now there's another way we verify this information."
"Really?!"
"Yes, but it's considered a secret of the Royal Family, so keep hush hush." She pressed one of her oil-stained fingers to the back of his hand. "Focus on this spot right here."
There was a different method? How had he never known about this? Did Zelda know about this? He pushed those thoughts aside and did as he was told, focusing on the tingling spot an inch below the knuckle of his index where Purah had touched.
It was brief, but he saw it. A small golden flash in his skin that resembled a triangle.
"That is what the Royal Family calls the Triforce." Purah explained, taking her finger away. "Apart from the Master Sword, the Triforce of Courage follows the Spirit of the Hero as well."
He was lost. What was a Triforce and why was it a secret of the Royal Family? How the hell did he know nothing about it?
He refocused on the spot, willing it to reappear. Slowly, it reappeared bit by bit, glowing brighter until he could see the faint outlines of a bigger triangle, where the top and bottom pieces were left dim. Only the bottom right glowed strongly in his hand.
"What are these other two pieces?"
"This one," she pointed to the tip, "is the Triforce of Power, the bottom is the Triforce of Wisdom. It was said to have been created by the Ancient Golden Goddesses during the creation of this world, and entrusted to Hylia long ago to protect. We don't know very much about it now, but back to your question about reincarnation. The Triforce of Wisdom is said to be carried by Princess Zelda, the incarnation of the Goddess Hylia, the other is carried by Ganon, though we have no solid proof of this, safe for the fact he returns time and time again in our old history books and legends."
She stood up and moved to her bookshelf, where she perused for a short moment and pulled out a dusty tome. She returned to the table and opened the book, where Link recognised some of the depictions to be legends of the olden heroes he'd grown up with.
"Yours reappears the least out of the three. The Hero is said to incarnate when a great evil threatens the nation, and we know the Master Sword is only ever pulled by the Hero reincarnated, time and time again."
"So when was the last said to have happened?"
"Well, our definitive records show a Hero pulled the sword nearly ten thousand years ago, but this is merely a prophecy backed by the presence of Ancient Sheikah Technology. I can guarantee that this nation has not been at peace for an entire ten thousand years, that's for sure. The Royal libraries have been burnt and re-established many times over the last few centuries. Personally, I think the sword has been pulled once or twice every millenia."
An interesting thought, he didn't know what to make of that statement, and while it intrigued him, he wasn't about to dive too deep into that mystery right now. He still wanted to know about one thing.
"Do you think memories could follow reincarnations?"
"Memories?" She cocked her head.
"Yeah, memories, or past experiences?"
"Why are you interested in such a thing all of a sudden?"
And so he recounted what happened in the Sealed Temple in Tanagar Canyon. What happened with the bird statuette, the 'out of body' experience Zelda and Impa called it, the specter of the first Hero who was said to have forged the blade to its current glory while Purah listened quietly.
By the time he was finished, Purah was quiet, and the only noise Link could hear was the whizzing of the machinery near the guidance stone.
He had told her every little excruciating detail of the encounter, including the bond and what Sky had said about talking to reincarnations and Zelda maybe being able to.
"You… you may want to talk to Princess Zelda herself about this." She mumbled, very unsure of herself. "But I see your apprehension in completing your bond with her. It's clearly a complex matter that needs a proper discussion."
Link sighed. A proper discussion. That was still a problem. "I'd gladly sit down for longer than ten minutes if I didn't have His Majesty breathing down my neck constantly, being kicked out of the castle indefinitely, and a schedule that laughs at the thought of proper sleep."
"Is His Majesty really making it that hard for you both?"
"You have no idea," Link sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I see Zelda during lunch and that's about it. She came to see me once during training and she got whisked away almost immediately."
He let his head drop against his arm with a whine.
Purah gave him a slow pat on the back. "It'll get better… probably. He can't keep you apart forever."
"But he can definitely try." He muffled out against his arm. "He seems to think he's a god or something."
"He is still Princess Zelda's fath-" A knock on the door cut off Purah mid-sentence. "One minute."
She stood up and opened the door while Link continued to fake-weep in silence on her table.
"Link, it's your sister." She left the other sibling into the house, taking the small crate that was in her hands. She was partially baffled by the fact that the woman had hiked up the hill, giggling baby on one hip with potions supported on the other.
"Aryll?" He lifted his head and looked at her confused. "I thought you were coming later this afternoon?"
"Dumbass, it's already 4:35 in the afternoon. How much later did you think?"
"What?!" He shot up from the table and looked at the clock on the wall. "Oh Dad's gonna kill me."
The speed at which Link threw on his boots and grabbed his stuff was astounding, but he was quickly stopped in his tracks on the way out by his sister stepping in his way, effectively now blocking the only exit.
"You promised to walk up with me and you forgot, I'm not walking back down that mountain by myself, you ass." She grumbled a few profanitues under her breath before motioning to the box and little Ari. "Pick one to carry: box or baby?"
He waited until Purah was done taking out the contents of the box before plucking his niece right out of his sister's arms with glee.. Link spared none of his sudden enthusiasm, gasping dramatically and poking the child's nose while he bounced her happily in his arm.
"Isn't she the cutest?" He turned to Purah to show her the little child, who reached out with a tiny hand.
"The cutest. Um, Link?"
He turned his attention back to his niece and made little noises all while Purah watched from the sidelines, dumbfounded.
It was as if he hadn't been lamenting missing Zelda less than a minute ago.
"Link?"
"Hmm?" He didn't look at her, but his head tilted to the side to show he was still paying attention.
"Did you want to finish that conversation now or…"
He blew a raspberry at the infant before answering. "I'll probably come back later this week."
"Alright, I'll tell the Princess you said hi."
Purah wasn't quite sure if Link had forgotten he was standing in her lab surrounded by guardian parts, oil rags and research papers. It was a strange sight to see the Hero of legend baby-talk and babble incoherently to a child.
It had barely been an hour since he departed from the lab when he, Aryll and Ari finally arrived at the house.
The moment they reached, Link could see his father waiting for him, sitting on the tree stump they used as a chopping board for the wood, axe switching from hand to hand.
Link was late, and that was one of the very few things his family didn't tolerate, especially coming from his dad.
"Best of luck." His sister whispered to him before taking Ari back and fleeing inside the house and slamming the door shut,
I'm going to need it.
"H-hi Dad."
His father didn't bother looking up from the metallic end of the axe in his hands. "You're late."
"You," His father swung the axe down hard, lodging it into the wood. "Still haven't told me about your bonded, not even a mention of a mate." His father sent him a pointed glare. "I would have thought you'd have at least written home."
Link swallowed nervously. No one in the house knew he was bonded. His brother-in-law knew he was sleeping with the princess, but no one thought about bonds.
Well, he had to give it to his dad. He was about as smart as he looked with a glare that matched the intensity.
"How did you know?" He mumbled just loud enough for the two of them to hear.
His father stopped axing the wood for a moment to shoot him a look of disbelief. "Boy, I wasn't born yesterday. You've been taking extra care in hiding the right side of your neck since you came home. Your mother might be a bit slow, but you've been waving red flags in my face since you got home. Don't tell your mother I said that."
Link swallowed thickly and nodded. He hated the sight of his father's cold grey eyes staring him down like that. "I'm sorry, Dad, just had a lot on my mind recently." The axe came down in one deadly motion, splitting the thick wood in clean halves.
The King, Zelda, the bond itself, the Yiga, the Calamity, castle security, that was the first few things if Link was going to make himself a list. He still had so many more responsibilities to deal with, most being postponed since he had this forced vacation thrown his way.
"Three days you've been home." He dislodged the axe from the stump before swinging it back down harder, splitting the halves into clean quarters this time, sending the smaller pieces flying off to the side. "You used to tell me everything, you're so secretive now."
He extended a hand out and Link passed another log from the side. The older man set it up and readied his axe.
"I'm sorry, It's just-"
"Why not tell me now? If it's your sister's gossip you're scared of, she won't hear it from me." He heaved and swung the axe down, lodging it an inch into the wood. "Do I have to exchange letters with Arn to find out what happens with my own son now?"
Right, his father worked with Arn in the past, he'd forgotten about their shared duty of over ten years.
"No, no, it's ok. No need to ask Arn." He prayed Arn would never tell his dad that he was hiding in the Princess' closet only days before.
"Go on then," He swung the axe two more times before finally splitting the next.
Link passed over one of the thicker logs, placing it himself with both hands at the bigger size. He took his steps to the side and let his dad line up the axe. "I…I bonded with Princ-"
The log came down full force, splitting in one clean cut, hard enough for the axe to lodge itself into the stump beneath. His father didn't dare look at Link, his face hardened as he glared at the log.
"Have I raised you to be stupid?" His voice was quiet as he ripped the axe out of the stump. Link kept his eyes on the axe below. He didn't like seeing him hold the axe to the point his knuckles were white.
He knew his mother wasn't a big fan of Zelda, but to hear his dad like this was… surprising. Link thought that, between them both, he'd be, at the very least, somewhat neutral about the news.
"Answer me Link!"
"N-No."
"What possessed you to do something so dense? So dim-witted? Tell me you're joking." His father pitched the axe to the side into the bushes. "Link!"
"I-I didn't initiate it!" He didn't enjoy hearing his father raise his voice, and he knew it wouldn't be long before he got the scolding of his life. Link had gotten his quiet nature from his father, but Frederick, ex-Captain of the Queen's Guard, was a force to be reckoned with when angered.
At least he isn't holding the axe anymore…
"Come with me." His father started down the path away from their home, and Link... Well he prayed he wasn't walking into an early grave.